“Fought with passion in defence"

The first team celebrated their opening win of the new season in Augsburg, supported by over 1000 travelling fans.

FC Augsburg 2-3 Mainz 05

Robin Zentner: “The three points were the target before the game. We fought with passion in defence today. We’re extremely happy that we didn’t concede that penalty in the final second. We didn’t start well, and were basically too deep and didn’t exert any pressure. The lead came as a surprise after how it had been up until that point. The sending off was extremely painful, but we somehow managed to go into half-time at 2-1. The third goal came out of nowhere and at the right time and after the red card for Augsburg our chances increased enormously. We desperately needed the three points and must achieve the same at home. In terms of the performance, we definitely need to up our game and defend better.”

Niko Bungert: “It was an important win earned due to sheer willpower. After four matchdays, we can now say that the start to the season was okay. We showed a lot of spirit and threw ourselves into every challenge. This was the perfect response to the game against Bremen. We’re happy with three goals, which is no mean feat when playing in this kind of atmosphere. It’s clear that we have to defend better and take better advantage of second and third balls. Overall, though, it was a step forward. I think Aymen Barkok did a great job today and fully embraced his role of midfield enforcer. He’s certainly a candidate to come in for Nadiem in the next match.”

Jonny Burkardt: “It’s hard to describe how we felt after the final whistle because it was a game of such emotion for everyone in the stadium today. It felt like 3,000 balls passed through our penalty box. A huge weight is now off our shoulders after the first win, which was very important. We realise though that we still have work to do. We sat very deep today and need to push higher so we don’t let ourselves become boxed in like that. Augsburg deserved at least a point, but we will happily take the three. To score two goals just adds to the good feeling, but they would not have mattered as much to me if we hadn’t won. Our efficiency made the difference today.”